Lifesaving and swimming propelling device



New. 23, 1937. L.. M. DE CORLIEU LIFESAVING AND SWIMMING PROPELLING DEVICE Filed Sept. 21, 1935' 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Nov. 23, 1937. M. DE CORLIEU 2,099,973

LiFESAVING AND SWIMMING PROPELLING DEVICE Fi led Sept. 21, 1935 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 WWW Patented Nov. 23, 1937 UNITED STATES LIFESAVING AND SWDIMING PBDPEILING DEVICE Louis Marie de Corlieu, Saint Mande, France Application September 21, 1933, Serial No. 690,474

- In France April 6,1933

Claims.

This invention has for its object a life-saving and swimming equipment, comprising, for the feet, propelling devices essentially constituted by a flexible surface which, in its mean position, is

5 situated in alignment with the instep and its total angle of fiexure is from 60 to 120degrees, and, accessorily, for the hands, paddles essentially constituted by a bulged surface applied on the back of the hand and secured by resilient m taneously released therefrom.

The paddles for the feet, which constitute the most important propelling element of the equipment, can be employed alone and their use allows the speed of the swimmer to be considerably increased whilst diminishing the fatigue, so that a medium swimmer wearing the devices according to the invention, can swim long distances without fatigue in less time than that necessary for a better swimmer not wearing the said devices. 20 These propelling devices are used with excellent efliciency by effecting oscillatory and alter,- nate as well as simultaneous movements, and, owing totheir flexibility, they cause human swimming to be of fish-like nature, this being the reason for the remarkable results obtained.

The flexure of the knees and ankles is reduced 'to nearly nothing, particularly when the speed is very high, the locomotion being produced by the hips.

When the leg and foot are completely extended, in the swimming position, it is necessary that the useful surface should be in alignment with the top of the foot' and not with the sole of the foot.

There is never any interest in causing the mean direction to be brought nearer the extension of the sole of the foot, but, on the contrary, in general, for reasons of efliciency and for preventing fatigue, it is advantageous to move it farther away from the sole of thefoot, particularly concerning life-saving paddles to be used with shoes, or paddles for cold insulating clothes, or even for users having rather stiff ankles.

This correct placing in position being effected, it is further necessary that the total angle of flexure of the-propelling surface should be suited, for the application under consideration, to the effort produced by the swimmer. This total angle or amplitude must remain between the limits of 60 to 120 degrees, the half-amplitude, on either side remaining therefore included between 30 and 60 degrees, with about 45; degrees for optimum value of the half-amplitude in most cases.

The resultsgiven by these flexible paddles are bands or strips allowing the fingers to be instanexcellent: their amplitude is variable in function of the effort within the limits of use resulting from the mechanical characteristics of theflexible surface; the resiliency, flexibility and judicious curvature of the parts act therefore for promoting the efliciency of the propelling oscillations, within the limits of use resulting from the characteristics of the paddle.

Various forms of carrying the invention into practice are described hereinafter, byway of examples and not in a limiting sense, and are illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figs. 1 and 2 are an elevation and a plan view, respectively of a type of paddle for the feet.

Fig. 3 is a plan view of a constructional modi- 15 flcation of a paddle for the feet.

Figs. 4 and 5 are respectively a plan view of a paddle for the hand, and an elevation of the same paddle showing the fingers purposely disengaged therefrom.

The type of foot paddle illustrated in Figs. 1 and 2 is constituted, for instance, by a steel wire i forming a fiat armature arranged in a casing 2 of thin crepe, vulcanized rubber, or waterproof fabric.

The paddle is enclosed, at one of its ends in a member 3 fitting on the foot and made of strong crepe or moulded rubber, which holds it in contact with the top of the foot partially engaged in said member 3; a fiat resilient strip 4 passing behind the heel ensures complete fixation of the paddle on the foot.

Side abutments 5 and 6, arranged in the member 3, surround the end of the foot.

The portion of the member 3 located under the sole of the foot can be bulged in order to exactly fit the shape of the foot. 'In any case, it is convenient to perfectly close over the foot the pocket formed by the member 3, either owing to the shape given to this member, or by means of resilient strips 1 and I secured at the orifice of the member 3, one above and the other under the foot, and this in order to prevent the formation of prejudicious eddies about the foot.

A wedge is preferably secured in position un- 45 der the flexible surface so as to fit on the instep; this wedge can be made of frothy rubber the great resiliency of this material being highly favorable.

It is convenient to line the various constituent 50 parts, or some of them only, with frothy rubber or any other material ensuring, on the one hand, floating and, on the other hand, the diminution of friction.

Thus, the metal armature can be encased in 5 frothy rubber; wedges of the same thickness as' the wires I can also be arranged within the easing 2 between said wires, that is to say, in the case of Fig. 2, seven wedges In, in order to give to the propelling plate a flat regular shape.

Fig. 3 is a plan view of a similar paddle scarcely different. In fact, the wire can be replaced by any flexible blades, ribs or the like. The entire plate can also be constituted by a single flexible blade enclosed or not in a casing, and terminated or not by a fork or by several fingers, at will. This armature can be made of spring steel, rustless steel, celluloid, rhodoid, etc.

Finally, the entire paddle can be made of flexible material, without inner armature and it can be given hydrodynamic shapes; instead of utilizing the wedge 9 for the instep, a portion of the flexible surface can be given a suitable curvature.

In some cases, a supplementary layer of the encasing material makes it possible to obtain a resistance slightly greater in one direction than in the other.

Generally speaking, a flexibility increasing towards the end of the propelling device promotes the efliciency of the same.

Among these various designs, the type of foot paddle illustrated in plan view in Fig. 3 is constituted by a plate ll, made of spring steel covered with a coating, or of rustless steel and entirely encased in frothy rubber l2, protected by a casing l3.

By way of example, this plate is shown in the shape of four fingers. The member fitting on the foot is provided with a resilient strip 4, the function of which is to hold said member in position.

In these various designs, by giving to the member fitting on the foot 3. sufiicient width, and to the wedge fitting on the instep a suflicient thickness, it is possible to provide propelling devices utilizable on shoes, or again on cold insulating clothes. It is thus possible to obtain the entire set of active life-saving devices, the hydrodynamic qualities of which can be combined at will with the hydrostatic advantages of the various passive apparatus.

Figs. 4 and 5 illustrate a paddle for the hands, constituted by an oblong plate l4 curved inwardly in the shape of a very open spoon held on the back of the hand by a band l5 passing under the base of the palm and, besides, by a second band It under which the fingersare inserted. The space between these two bands allow the fingers to be instantaneously removed, as shown in Fig. 5.

The wrist band l5 can conveniently be reinforced, for instance by means of a covering member 11. I

All the above remarks relating to paddles for the feet are generally applicable to paddles devised for the hands, which latter paddles can be of various designs for bare hands or for cold insulating clothes, the shapes of which are as hydrodynamic as possible, and. with or without armature. The armature, if one is provided, can

be made of ordinary steel, rustless steel, alumin-- ium, duralumin, wood, cork, frothy-ebonite, etc. Frothy rubber and frothy ebonite each insures floating, and both must. in general, be slightly protected. 7

What I claim as my invention and desire to secure byLetters Patent is:-

stantially fiat, flexible and resilient, non-pivoted portion extending for a substantial distance forwardly beyond the toes and arranged tangential to the plane of the toes and so situated with respect to the foot as to lie substantially in alignment with the leg when the foot is extended in line with the leg in the position for performing the crawl stroke, means mounted on said paddle accurately fitting thefoot and securing the paddle thereto.

2. Swimming equipment for performing the crawl stroke, comprising a paddle adapted to be mounted on the foot having a substantially flat, flexible and resilient non-pivoted portion extending for a substantial distance forwardly beyond the toes and so situated with respect to the foot as to lie substantially in alignment with the leg, and tangential to the plane of the toes when the' foot is extended, so as to bring the upper surface of the foot into substantial alignment with the leg wherein the flexible portion of said paddle is arranged for mounting upon the upper surface of the foot, means interposed between the said portion and the instep whereby the said paddle is inclined with respect to the upper surface of the foot and thereby compensates for any stifiness of the swimmers ankle.

3. Swimming equipment for performing the crawl stroke, comprising a paddle adapted to be mounted on the foot and having a substantially fiat, flexible and resilient non-pivoted portion extending for a substantial distance forwardly beyond the toes and so situated with respect to the foot as to lie substantially in alignment with the leg, and tangential to the plane of the toes when the foot is extended, so as to bring the upper surface of the foot into substantial alignment with the leg wherein the flexible portion of said paddle is arranged for mounting upon the upper surface of the foot, a wedge interposed between the said portion and the instep in order to incline the said paddle with respect to the upper surface of the foot and thereby to compensate for any stiffness of the swimmers ankle.

4. Swimming equipment comprising a paddle adapted to be mounted on the foot having a substantially fiat, flexible and resilient, non-pivoted portion extending for a substantial distance forwardly beyond the toes and arranged tangential to the plane of the toes and so situated with respect to the foot as to lie substantially in alignment with the leg when the foot is extended in line with the leg in the position for performing the crawl stroke, pocket means mounted on said paddle having an orifice which accurately encloses the foot whereby any movement of water through the orifice is reduced as far as possible, the flexible portion of said paddle being arranged for mounting upon the upper surface of the foot, and means interposed between the said portion and the instep whereby the said paddle is inclined with respect to the upper surface of the foot and thereby compensates for any stiffness of ,the swimmer's ankle.

5. The device as claimed in claim 1 in which the means mounted on said paddle and fitting the foot have a flexible and soft fitting in contact with the skin, the toes, and the ankles, preventing injury or irritation and arranged in close contact with the upper part of the foot at the place where the paddle is positioned.

LOUIS'MARIE ns CORLIEU. 

